Are Birds Fake?
Why do you think birds sit on power lines? Is it because they like sitting in high places or because they are recharging their batteries? The Birds Aren’t Real movement was an entirely satire movement formed by Peter McIndoe, who at the time was a twenty-year-old college student (Alfonso III 1). He founded it in January of 2017, and while it was made as a joke people found that there are two conspiracy theories that may make someone think twice about dismissing this movement. One, all birds were replaced by government surveillance drones, and two the government promotes pet birds to normalize surveillance. To help understand these conspiracy theories, take a deep look into both of them.
The Mind Behind “Birds Aren’t Real”
Peter McIndoe’s key characteristic is his biting satire. He doesn’t really think birds are not real, but he employs the idea to reflect a critical lens on contemporary culture. His work was prompted by disgust with “chaos of disinformation” in America. McIndoe told The New York Times, “The whole idea was to take this conspiracy theory format and push it to the point of absurdity” (Alfonso III). Convincing people that birds aren’t existing was not his aim—it was to get individuals to consider why individuals believe they read. By means of satire, McIndoe reveals just how preposterous blind faith in internet conspiracy theory is.
The proof of this satire is ubiquitous in his movement’s branding. From signs that read “Wake Up! Birds Charge on Power Lines!” to parody rallies where supporters chant about robot pigeons, McIndoe creates a world that is just credible enough to make viewers doubt it. The humor is like a fishhook—it catches attention before dropping the bombshell message. McIndoe’s satire makes what appears to be a joke a treatise about truth itself. He illustrates that humor can be a great awareness builder, keeping the ridiculous seeming unreal until the viewer catches on that they are seeing a show. His satirical self makes him both a wit and a watchdog, pointing up how far away reality can get in a world with so many screens and headlines.
Another defining characteristic that is Peter McIndoe is that he is so persuasive. Even though the theory that the birds aren’t real began as a joke, a full-blown movement with nationwide coverage developed around it. McIndoe is able to use charisma, humor, and swagger to promote the joke so effectively that individuals believe it seriously. As Audubon Magazine reports, “The Birds Aren’t Real movement was an entirely satire movement formed by Peter McIndoe, who at the time was a twenty-year-old college student” (Alfonso III). Even at just twenty, McIndoe’s power to promote his message illustrates just how powerful persuasion can be—even with a message that is preposterous.
His speeches, interviews, and rallies are similarly persuasive. Passionate, committed, deadpan, funny, and serious, he combines sincerity and humor in a way that makes them blurrily distinct. That blurriness attracts, for he makes believing seem suspiciously like kidding around. His style of persuasion bears witness to a profound fact about human conduct: we do not necessarily believe propositions due to their veracity; we believe them due to their interest. McIndoe employs that fact to up-end conspiracy culture. By doing so, he illustrates how persuasion can create reality even as its basis is fiction.
McIndoe's charismatic personality also betrays his grasp of performance. Each public appearance, each interview, each speech is a production. Never does he lose character in speaking as head of Birds Aren’t Real, a device that lends verisimilitude to the satire. Their movement is credible in part due to the charisma he instills, and that is the very point. By persuasion, he illustrates just how far an idea will catch people up if they are shown confidence in it. By his work, he demonstrates that tone, manner, and personality can frequently have a more forceful effect than fact.
The Cultural Reality Behind the Birds Aren’t Real Movement
Originally an internet joke mocking conspiracy theories, the Birds Aren’t Real movement has grown into something real and culturally important. Started in 2017 by Peter McIndoe, it began as pure satire but quickly turned into a social movement that reflects how confused people are today about truth and media. Audubon Magazine says McIndoe created it as a joke when he was a twenty-year-old student, but now it has real chapters and national attention (Audubon Magazine). Snopes reports that around 50 groups across the U.S. have held rallies and sold merch, proving how far the idea has spread (Snopes). Even though the claim that birds are government drones is fake, the movement itself is real because it shapes identity, sparks conversations, and shows how fiction can easily turn into “truth” in modern culture.
The first conspiracy theory in the Birds Aren’t Real movement argues that the government secretly replaced real birds with drones to spy on citizens. Supporters believe this idea gained traction because of how quickly surveillance technology has advanced in the United States. According to The Guardian, “The idea that drones could mimic birds is not far-fetched given the current level of surveillance technology” (Hern 2). This suggests that even though the theory sounds extreme, the technology needed to create such drones is becoming increasingly realistic. Because the government already uses drones, satellites, phone tracking, and mass data collection, people can easily imagine a future where surveillance becomes even more hidden. As a result, the belief that birds could be used as undercover drones does not seem impossible to supporters of the movement.
The second conspiracy theory claims that real birds were wiped out and replaced with government surveillance drones during the Cold War. Supporters argue that this period of fear, secrecy, and political tension created the perfect opportunity for the government to operate unnoticed. The New York Times reports, “Followers of the Birds Aren’t Real movement claim that between 1959 and 1971, the U.S. government replaced over 12 billion birds with surveillance drones designed to monitor citizens” (Alfonso 1). This quote shows how deeply the movement ties its beliefs to a moment in history when citizens were distracted by global conflict and military threats. Because the nation’s focus was on the war and nuclear competition, believers argue the government could replace birds without raising suspicion. As a result, this theory strengthens the movement’s claim that mass surveillance has been happening longer—and far more secretly—than most people realize.
Another major idea in the Birds Aren’t Real movement is that the government uses bird drones to collect personal data and track people’s everyday behavior. Supporters argue that this theory feels believable because modern technology already collects huge amounts of information from phones, computers, and social media. According to Wired Magazine, “Surveillance devices today are built to blend into the environment, gathering data in ways most citizens never notice” (Wired 4). This evidence shows why some people think it is possible for the government to push surveillance even further by disguising it as something ordinary, like a bird. Since people already feel watched online and on camera, the idea that birds could also be part of a larger surveillance system seems less strange to them. As a result, this theory helps strengthen the movement’s message that privacy is disappearing in ways most people don’t realize.
Overall, the Birds Aren’t Real movement proves that even ideas that start as jokes can become powerful cultural forces. While the beliefs within the movement are not scientifically true, the movement itself reveals something important about how people respond to technology, government power, and media influence. Supporters use conspiracy theories to express real fears about surveillance and privacy, making the movement meaningful in modern society. In the end, Birds Aren’t Real shows how easily fiction can become a shared “truth” for people who feel unheard or overwhelmed, and it demonstrates how conspiracy theories can shape identity, community, and national conversation.​
In conclusion, the Birds Aren’t Real movement shows how easily people can be influenced when they are unsure about what to believe in the media and the government. The two main conspiracy theories—the idea that birds were replaced with government drones and the belief that the government uses bird drones to normalize surveillance—both reveal how worried people are about privacy today. By looking at the movement’s history, the spread of its ideas, and the real fears behind it, we can understand why so many people find the theories convincing. Even though the movement started as a joke, it exposes how fast misinformation can turn into something people treat as truth. Out of the two theories, the belief that birds were replaced with surveillance drones during the Cold War best solves the problem because it connects directly to government secrecy and rising technology. Overall, the Birds Aren’t Real movement proves that even satire can reflect real concerns about privacy, technology, and who is watching us.
